Issue date: 9/9/09 Section: Opinions

I'm the never-say-die kind of person. Some may call it a shortcoming; others may call it a shining example of my genetic hard-headedness. One look at my long-standing inability to quit smoking cigarettes and can see how I simply don't know when to say enough is enough and call it quits.

In Tuesday's edition of The Daily Eastern News, Eric Hiltner wrote a column concerning the need to know when to pack it in, when to quit.

In speaking with my cohort, Hiltner pointed out that the column is not meant to advise those to quit simply for the sake of quitting. He said he merely wished to impart upon students the need to, at times, come to the realization that one may not be cut out for his chosen field.

I could not disagree more.

I'm the type of person who sticks to my guns long after the clips are rendered empty.

I say it is far better to go down swinging.

I agree with Hiltner when he states that no one will ever hand you an 'A' and no one in the field you hope to find yourself in will ever hand you success.

However, I submit that no matter how difficult things may become and how much it may seem, if you want it badly enough, you can make anything happen.

For example, I, like Hiltner, am a senior journalism major. I have been attending this university and working for The DEN for about six years now.

I have also come to the realization that I will most likely never win a Pulitzer Prize and I will probably never see the inside of the Eastern Hall of Fame.

But, to me, it's those kinds of odds that drive me even harder. I love a good come-from-behind win. I thrive for the chance to excel when underestimated.

But then, I have always had a problem with complacency. The better I do, the more comfortable I get, and the less I strive.

I love having my back to the proverbial wall. And, for me, it's when I find myself in a situation where defeat is almost assured that I try to win even more. Take my track record with the Madden video game series.

It's late in the game, maybe 30 seconds left to go and I'm down by 28 points. You had better believe I'm throwing up a Hail Mary!

When I find myself staring at a blank screen at 2 a.m. and my 10-page paper is due at noon? Why, that's when I do my best writing.

Hiltner was correct in his assertion that sometimes we have to accept when we may not be cut out for something. Perhaps the career you hope for isn't meant to be. Maybe the powers that be didn't intend for you to succeed in every class.

By all means, if your heart isn't in it, then it's a waste of your energy and an affront to yourself to keep trudging along when you just don't care anymore.

But, I still believe if you want anything badly enough, you can move mountains to make it happen.

And who knows? Who is to say that Hail Mary pass won't connect for a touchdown?

And isn't it better to go down fighting tooth and nail than to hang one's head and mutter 'Oh, bother….?' I'll take a fighting loss to quitting any day.

David Thill is a senior journalism major and can be reached at 581-7942 or at
DENopinions@gmail.com.

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